Elisabet Avramidou Granlund or Elli AvrRam, as she is known professionally, is a Swedish-Greek actress who now stars in Bollywood movies and is based in Mumbai. She came into the limelight after she entered the Bigg Boss house in 2013 as a contestant in season 7. She started her acting career in 2008 in Swedish movie Förbjuden Frukt and made her Bollywood debut with 2013 movie Mickey Virus.
Following Mickey Virus, which did not do well at the box office but received positive reviews from critics, Elli starred in Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon, in which stand-up comedian Kapil Sharma made his Bollywood debut. The film is said to have performed well at the box office on its first day of release and was the highest first-day grosser for a newcomer, beating the previous record-holder, Student Of The Year.
In 2017, Elli did a cameo for film Naam Shabana, and then made a special appearance in the song Kudiyan Shehar Diyan of Hindi movie Poster Boys. The following year she made a special appearance in the song Iraga Iraga of Telegu film Naa Peru Surya, Naa Illu India and then the same year she made a special appearance in the song Billionaire for Hindi movie Baazaar.
Elli then made a special appearance in the song Chamma Chamma for 2019 Hindi movie Fraud Saiyaan, and again in the song Zila Hilela for Hindi movie Jabariya Jodi. In the same year, she starred in Tamil movie Paris Paris, Kannada movie Butterfly and in Netflix web series Typewriter.
Personal Life:
Elli, who is of Greek and Swedish descent, was born on July 29, 1990 to Jannis Avramidis and Maria Granlund. Her father Jannis, who is from Greece, is a musician and is now settled in Sweden and her mother Maria is a famous Swedish actress who acted in Ingmar Bergman's Oscar-winning film Fanny and Alexander.
Early Life:
Along with pursuing an interest in figure skating, singing and dancing, Elli also received training in acting from her mother and aunt who runs a theater in Skåne County, Sweden. She attended Frans Schartau High School in Stockholm, from where she graduated in Society-Economics. In 2010, Elli participated in Miss Greece beauty contest and also made an appearance on the Swedish TV series Gomorron Sverige.
Bollywood Calling:
Drawn towards the Indian culture at a young age, Elli dreamt of becoming a Bollywood actress since her adolescence. She would visit a video store in Stockholm that sold Hindi movies and she would buy Bollywood films. So enamoured she was with the Hindi films that she would also watch them on YouTube. Her interest in all things Bollywood did not end in just watching the movies though, as at the age of 17 she became a member of Pardesi Dance Group based in the Stockholm, and during the dance performances, she performed primarily to Bollywood songs.
Pursuing her Bollywood dream, Elli moved to Mumbai in September 2012 on a tourist visa. Her first job was with a modeling agency through which got her a work visa. After appearing for a TV commercial for Eveready Industries India with actor Akshay Kumar, and other TV commercials, she eventually landed her first Bollywood role in movie Mickey Virus.
With her career in Bollywood taking off, Elli will next be seen in Hindi movie Malang, directed by Mohit Suri and starring Aditya Roy Kapur and Disha Patani. The film will also feature Anil Kapoor and Kunal Khemu.
Social:
Elli Avram keeps her followers updated through her Facebook page - Elli AvrRam World/@ElliAvrram, Twitter - Elisabet Elli AvrRam/@ElliAvrRam and Instagram - @elliavrram.
